Me and Religion (The Great Inner Debate) (for me anyway)
Me and Religion (The Great Debate) (for me anyway)
Sort of different and a little freeing writing this. I proceed none the less.
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In November 2006, I started going to church again for the first time since high school other than a few visits to Catholic Mass (never have been Catholic although I like the play calling hand gestures and the reflecting pool) with a friend of mine. When I was little, I always complained about having to go to church. Something about church never really set well with me. Yeah, I didn't like that extra day of getting up early (kids already have school 5 days a week) but there was more than that. I never really understood church or why people were so obsessed with it (obessed not being a bad thing in this case, just the word I have to describe it off the top of my head). I don't think my twin was ever a big fan either but he has always been less spoken in complaint than I have. I mean, I still was drawing on the program during the sermon when I went to church my freshman and sophomore years of high school. That, and for some reason, I just never could connect with the message of church or God at that age. There was always some reason I didn't like church and in return, God. Partly, I'm sure because my parents insisted upon me going and so I never really could envision why church and God was such a big deal. That, and as I told other people, I was really interested in the Revolutionary War and the Civil War and past history of kings and oppressors and dictators. So, as I grew up and even still today, I would always equate God to King James of England or someone of similar stature. (See senior high school research paper -- well, if you could access it anyway) I always heard from Church or talking to other people about church that God was king, set the rules / mandates, and such. Even today with the songs people sing at church, I still have trouble singing the words or saying the words when we sing "praise to the King" or "glory to God" or similar type passages.
Anyway, back to the present. The church I went / go to (haven't been in a month = vacation, olympics, political conventions, thought process) is a nice place to go. The church I went to I almost never went back to after the first Sunday school class unless it was for meeting some people after sunday school class (instead of the Link) and talking around in the hall with them. I liked those people. They were nice and I could relate to them in some way. And I had been going to that church since for the last 18 months (up until about 6 weeks ago). Also, for several months in the Spring of 2008, some Mormon missionaries also came and though I normally would have said no, I was interested to see what they said. They too were great people, I could relate to them, and there religion made as much sense to me as any of the others. Of course, all religions require a great leap of faith and that is partly what makes them great.
(There's a more in depth version of the last two paragraphs but that is the short version).
I decided I needed a break from church (and work) so vacation, 2 weeks of the olympics, two weeks of the political conventions (sort of a perfect storm of weeks for a guy like me who likes sports, the olympics, and politics). During that break, I have been considering my future with religion and what I think about religion and Heaven and Hell and God and all that sort of stuff. Here's what I came up with for religion and how it relates to me:
1) I don't think I will ever get baptized. I'm pretty sure of that. I just don't think I could commit to one religion or even Christianity as a whole. I believe that all faiths are great from Christianity to Islam to Judaism to Buddhism to Hinduism to native spirits to mother nature. That being said, I don't think any one faith is for me. I have always had as one of my core values that no one is better or in higher regard than anyone else. As a result, I could never see myself worshiping God or taking Jesus as my Savior or the corresponding options for the other religions. To be honest, I don't know about the Buddhist and the Hindus but I have always thought Christians (including Mormons), Muslim, and Jews all worshiped the same God. They just get there different ways. And of course Christians have Jesus, Muslims have Mohammed, and the Jewish savior is yet to come. In the end though, they all seem to me to have the same common faith and ideas from the big picture. Buddhism and Hinduism are I believe different but I do not know enough about those religions to say. Either way, I think most all religions and faiths are pretty great in binding their believers together for a greater cause above oneself.
2) Do I believe in God? I've never seen him nor do I know without a doubt that God exists. I do know that millions and millions (more like a couple of billion) believe their God (same one or not) exists and that beliefs are sometimes more powerful than the real thing. Whether God is out there or not, there is at least a God-like power that binds each of these faiths together in their respective faith. That drives them toward good. That provides comfort and strength for them when they are in need. That builds a greater family among a bunch of individuals that stretches across national borders, oceans, race, socioeconomic status, political preferences, etc. And hey, the world had to be created somehow and since none of us were around then, I don't think we will ever know for sure.
3) As far as Heaven and Hell, I don't know. All I do know is we get buried or cremated, at least I hope so. But I definitely hope Heaven and Hell do exist. I hope Heaven exist for all the people who suffer courageously with disease and traumatic injury, who die protecting others, the children and women who leave this life the way no one ever should, for families torn apart to be brought back together, for the dreams of those shattered in this life to have a chance to strive again, for the people who wake up and try to make others lives around them better. I'd hate to know there wasn't a heaven for these people and only pray that their is one. And I hope there is a Hell out there as well for all the people who harm innocent women and children, for the dictators / tyrants / cruelists that rape and plunder communities, for the people who value riches over life and will do anything to get them. For those people who do the unthinkable to hurt or harm others, I pray their is a Hell and would not want to know their isn't one.
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That is where I am at so far. Good or bad, I do not know. But it is me.
Sort of different and a little freeing writing this. I proceed none the less.
---------------------------------------------------
In November 2006, I started going to church again for the first time since high school other than a few visits to Catholic Mass (never have been Catholic although I like the play calling hand gestures and the reflecting pool) with a friend of mine. When I was little, I always complained about having to go to church. Something about church never really set well with me. Yeah, I didn't like that extra day of getting up early (kids already have school 5 days a week) but there was more than that. I never really understood church or why people were so obsessed with it (obessed not being a bad thing in this case, just the word I have to describe it off the top of my head). I don't think my twin was ever a big fan either but he has always been less spoken in complaint than I have. I mean, I still was drawing on the program during the sermon when I went to church my freshman and sophomore years of high school. That, and for some reason, I just never could connect with the message of church or God at that age. There was always some reason I didn't like church and in return, God. Partly, I'm sure because my parents insisted upon me going and so I never really could envision why church and God was such a big deal. That, and as I told other people, I was really interested in the Revolutionary War and the Civil War and past history of kings and oppressors and dictators. So, as I grew up and even still today, I would always equate God to King James of England or someone of similar stature. (See senior high school research paper -- well, if you could access it anyway) I always heard from Church or talking to other people about church that God was king, set the rules / mandates, and such. Even today with the songs people sing at church, I still have trouble singing the words or saying the words when we sing "praise to the King" or "glory to God" or similar type passages.
Anyway, back to the present. The church I went / go to (haven't been in a month = vacation, olympics, political conventions, thought process) is a nice place to go. The church I went to I almost never went back to after the first Sunday school class unless it was for meeting some people after sunday school class (instead of the Link) and talking around in the hall with them. I liked those people. They were nice and I could relate to them in some way. And I had been going to that church since for the last 18 months (up until about 6 weeks ago). Also, for several months in the Spring of 2008, some Mormon missionaries also came and though I normally would have said no, I was interested to see what they said. They too were great people, I could relate to them, and there religion made as much sense to me as any of the others. Of course, all religions require a great leap of faith and that is partly what makes them great.
(There's a more in depth version of the last two paragraphs but that is the short version).
I decided I needed a break from church (and work) so vacation, 2 weeks of the olympics, two weeks of the political conventions (sort of a perfect storm of weeks for a guy like me who likes sports, the olympics, and politics). During that break, I have been considering my future with religion and what I think about religion and Heaven and Hell and God and all that sort of stuff. Here's what I came up with for religion and how it relates to me:
1) I don't think I will ever get baptized. I'm pretty sure of that. I just don't think I could commit to one religion or even Christianity as a whole. I believe that all faiths are great from Christianity to Islam to Judaism to Buddhism to Hinduism to native spirits to mother nature. That being said, I don't think any one faith is for me. I have always had as one of my core values that no one is better or in higher regard than anyone else. As a result, I could never see myself worshiping God or taking Jesus as my Savior or the corresponding options for the other religions. To be honest, I don't know about the Buddhist and the Hindus but I have always thought Christians (including Mormons), Muslim, and Jews all worshiped the same God. They just get there different ways. And of course Christians have Jesus, Muslims have Mohammed, and the Jewish savior is yet to come. In the end though, they all seem to me to have the same common faith and ideas from the big picture. Buddhism and Hinduism are I believe different but I do not know enough about those religions to say. Either way, I think most all religions and faiths are pretty great in binding their believers together for a greater cause above oneself.
2) Do I believe in God? I've never seen him nor do I know without a doubt that God exists. I do know that millions and millions (more like a couple of billion) believe their God (same one or not) exists and that beliefs are sometimes more powerful than the real thing. Whether God is out there or not, there is at least a God-like power that binds each of these faiths together in their respective faith. That drives them toward good. That provides comfort and strength for them when they are in need. That builds a greater family among a bunch of individuals that stretches across national borders, oceans, race, socioeconomic status, political preferences, etc. And hey, the world had to be created somehow and since none of us were around then, I don't think we will ever know for sure.
3) As far as Heaven and Hell, I don't know. All I do know is we get buried or cremated, at least I hope so. But I definitely hope Heaven and Hell do exist. I hope Heaven exist for all the people who suffer courageously with disease and traumatic injury, who die protecting others, the children and women who leave this life the way no one ever should, for families torn apart to be brought back together, for the dreams of those shattered in this life to have a chance to strive again, for the people who wake up and try to make others lives around them better. I'd hate to know there wasn't a heaven for these people and only pray that their is one. And I hope there is a Hell out there as well for all the people who harm innocent women and children, for the dictators / tyrants / cruelists that rape and plunder communities, for the people who value riches over life and will do anything to get them. For those people who do the unthinkable to hurt or harm others, I pray their is a Hell and would not want to know their isn't one.
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That is where I am at so far. Good or bad, I do not know. But it is me.
posted by mrholmes | 5:12 PM
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